130th Ohio General Assembly
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Sub. H. B. No. 234  As Reported by the House Elections and Ethics Committee
As Reported by the House Elections and Ethics Committee

126th General Assembly
Regular Session
2005-2006
Sub. H. B. No. 234


Representatives Wolpert, Kearns, C. Evans, D. Evans, Beatty, Miller, Brown, Distel, S. Smith, Widowfield, Trakas, Boccieri, Hood, Allen, D. Stewart, Law, Uecker 



A BILL
To amend sections 3501.22 and 3501.27 of the Revised Code to permit a board of elections, in conjunction with a board of education, the governing authority of a community school, or the chief administrator of a nonpublic school, to establish a program permitting certain high school seniors to serve as precinct officers on the day of an election, and to permit a board of elections to establish such a program for home-instructed students who are in the equivalent of the twelfth year of a one through twelve year instructional program.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:
Section 1. That sections 3501.22 and 3501.27 of the Revised Code be amended to read as follows:
Sec. 3501.22.  (A) On or before the fifteenth day of September in each year the board of elections by a majority vote shall, after careful examination and investigation as to their qualifications, appoint for each election precinct four competent electors, residents of the county in which the precinct is located, as judges. Such electors Except as otherwise provided in division (C) of this section, all judges of election shall be qualified electors. The judges shall constitute the election officers of the precinct. Not more than one-half of the total number of judges shall be members of the same political party. The term of such precinct officers shall be for one year. The board may, at any time, designate any number of election officers, not more than one-half of whom shall be members of the same political party, to perform their duties at any precinct in any election. The board may appoint additional officials, equally divided between the two major political parties, when necessary to expedite voting.
Vacancies for unexpired terms shall be filled by the board. When new precincts have been created, the board shall appoint judges for such precincts for the unexpired term. Any judge may be summarily removed from office at any time by the board for neglect of duty, malfeasance, or misconduct in office, or for any other good and sufficient reason.
Precinct election officials shall perform all of the duties provided by law for receiving the ballots and supplies, opening and closing the polls, and overseeing the casting of ballots during the time the polls are open, and any other duties required by section 3501.26 of the Revised Code.
A board of elections may designate two precinct election officials as counting officials to count and tally the votes cast and certify the results of the election at each precinct, and perform such other duties as are provided by law. To expedite the counting of votes at each precinct, the board may appoint additional officials, not more than one-half of whom shall be members of the same political party.
The board shall designate one of the precinct election officials who is a member of the dominant political party to serve as a presiding judge, whose duty it is to deliver the returns of the election and all supplies to the office of the board. For these services the presiding judge shall receive additional compensation in an amount, consistent with section 3501.28 of the Revised Code, determined by the board of elections.
The board shall issue to each precinct election official a certificate of appointment, which the official shall present to the presiding judge at the time the polls are opened.
(B) If the board of elections determines that not enough qualified electors in a precinct are available to serve as precinct officers, it may appoint persons to serve as precinct officers at a primary, special, or general election who are at least seventeen years of age and are registered to vote in accordance with section 3503.07 of the Revised Code. No more than two precinct officers in any precinct shall be under eighteen years of age.
(C)(1)(a) A board of elections, in conjunction with the board of education of a city, local, or exempted village school district, the governing authority of a community school established under Chapter 3314. of the Revised Code, or the chief administrator of a nonpublic school may establish a program permitting certain high school students to apply and, if appointed by the board of elections, to serve as precinct officers at a primary, special, or general election.
In addition to the requirements established by division (C)(2) of this section, a board of education, governing authority, or chief administrator that establishes a program under this division in conjunction with a board of elections may establish additional criteria that students shall meet to be eligible to participate in that program.
(b) A board of elections may establish a program permitting certain students who are excused from attending a school that meets the minimum standards prescribed by the state board of education under section 3321.04 of the Revised Code because the students are being instructed at home to apply and, if appointed by the board of elections, to serve as precinct officers at a primary, special, or general election.
(2)(a) To be eligible to participate in a program established under division (C)(1) of this section, a student shall be a United States citizen, a resident of the county, at least seventeen years of age, and enrolled in the senior year of high school or in the equivalent of the twelfth year of a one through twelve year instructional program at the time of appointment.
(b) Any student applying to participate in a program established under division (C)(1) of this section, as part of the student's application process, shall declare the student's political party affiliation with the board of elections.
(3) No student appointed as a precinct officer pursuant to a program established under division (C)(1) of this section shall be designated as a presiding judge.
(4)(a) Any student participating in a program established under division (C)(1)(a) of this section shall be excused for that student's absence from school on the day of an election at which the student is serving as a precinct officer.
(b) The number of hours that any student participating in a program established under division (C)(1)(b) of this section spends serving as a precinct officer on the day of an election shall be counted towards the number of hours of instructional time required of that student by rule of the state board of education, except that no more than six and one half hours shall be counted toward the student's required hours of instructional time for serving as a precinct officer for any one election.
Sec. 3501.27.  (A) All judges of election shall be qualified electors who have completed complete a program of instruction pursuant to division (B) of this section. No person who has been convicted of a felony, or any violation of the election laws, or who is unable to read and write the English language readily, or who is a candidate for an office to be voted for by the voters of the precinct in which he the person is to serve shall serve as an election officer. A person when appointed as an election officer shall receive from the board of elections a certificate of appointment which may be revoked at any time by the board for good and sufficient reasons. Such certificate shall be in such form as the board prescribes and shall specify the precinct, ward, or district in and for which the person to whom it is issued is appointed to serve, the date of appointment, and the expiration of his the person's term of service.
(B) Each board shall establish a program as prescribed by the secretary of state for the instruction of election officers in the rules, procedures, and law relating to elections. In each program, the board shall use training materials prepared by the secretary of state, and may use additional materials prepared by or on behalf of the board. The board may use the services of unpaid volunteers in conducting its program and may reimburse such volunteers for necessary and actual expenses incurred in participating in the program.
The board shall train each new election officer before the new officer participates in his the first election in that capacity. The board shall instruct election officials who have been trained previously only when the board or secretary of state considers such instruction necessary, but the board shall reinstruct such persons, other than presiding judges, at least once in every three years and shall reinstruct presiding judges before the primary election in even-numbered years. The board shall schedule any program of instruction within sixty days prior to the election in which the officials to be trained will participate.
(C) The duties of a judge of an election in each polling place shall be performed only by an individual who has successfully completed the requirements of the program, unless such an individual is unavailable after reasonable efforts to obtain such services.
(D) The secretary of state shall establish a program for the instruction of members of boards of elections and employees of boards in the rules, procedures, and law relating to elections. Each member and employee shall complete the training program within six months after his the member's or employee's original appointment or employment, and thereafter, each member and employee shall complete a training program to update their knowledge once every four years or more often as determined by the secretary of state.
(E) The secretary of state shall reimburse each county for the cost of programs established pursuant to division (B) of this section, once he the secretary of state has received an itemized statement of expenses for such instruction programs from the county. The itemized statement shall be in a form prescribed by the secretary of state.
Section 2. That existing sections 3501.22 and 3501.27 of the Revised Code are hereby repealed.
Section 3.  Section 3501.22 of the Revised Code is presented in this act as a composite of the section as amended by both Am. Sub. H.B. 99 and Am. H.B. 215 of the 121st General Assembly. The General Assembly, applying the principle stated in division (B) of section 1.52 of the Revised Code that amendments are to be harmonized if reasonably capable of simultaneous operation, finds that the composite is the resulting version of the section in effect prior to the effective date of the section as presented in this act.
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